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Absolution Reviews

05.08.2004 London - Mean Fiddler

THE MISSION/NFD/X-LOVER - MEAN FIDDLER, LONDON - 5TH AUGUST 2004
By Dave Chinnery, thanks Dave!

London was so hot and once inside the venue it was even hotter.The Mean Fiddler is right next door to the Astoria and is unusual in the fact that the main stage is in a basement and the bars run around the top with windows to see the bands while you were drinking.

First band on where X-lover a self described electro punk band with quirky 80's style synthesizers. The lead singer was wearing the tightest and shortest of outfits. She was very colourful and gave her all to the London crowd. www.xlover.net

NFD are formed from various members of Fields of the Nephilim, Sensorium and The Nefilim, with such a good pedigree this band on paper looked fantastic. Believe me they did not disappoint. Capturing the dark side of Fields of the Nephilim, with further influences of modern metal and industrial music. Lead singer Peter "Bob" White's vocals were spot on giving Carl McCoy a run for his money in the growling stakes. He stood in front of the crowd dressed in leather with long red dreadlocks and impressed most people in the place with his presence. Tracks come from the debut ep "Break the silence" available from Jungle records (www.jungle-records.com) . The title track is an epic at 9 minutes long, which went down very well and was delivered immaculately. A debut album is planned for October called "No Love Lost" also on Jungle records. The biggest surprise of the night was a brilliant version of Fields of the Nephilim hit "Preacher Man" to hear this again live was fantastic and a massive applause was given as the band left the stage. www.nfd.web.com

The Mission have had a few line-up changes over the years, however despite this Wayne Hussey seems to be able to gather musicians around him that carry on the band in the spirit with which it was formed. For that reason The Mission have some of the most loyal fans that any band could expect to have, one of them tonight was celebrating his 200th Mission show, which is no mean feat.

The set kicked of with "Neverland" opener "Raising Cain" and the loyal fans gathered down in the middle of the audience and formed a circle and stayed there all night enjoying the show. Mission fans have been nick named "Eskimo's" due to there staying power. Wayne Hussey is a great front man and the way he leads from the front is amazing, The Mission was once a stadium rock band and used to fill venues like Wembley Arena and Birmingham Nec on a regular basis, despite their fall from the major public eye they still tour and play shows all over the world and bring great music to many people.

A great mixture of songs were played from all albums old songs such as "Garden Of Delight", "Severina", and a surprise version of "Hymn for America" from the "Children" album was included in the set. The rather interesting new introduction to "Tower of Strength" was the sign to some of the crowd to build a human tower. This has happened for years at Mission shows and tonight was no different, three people high was achieved, as usual being one of the biggest I was at the bottom. As far as I'm aware nobody has ever got hurt from doing this...well maybe a few small bruises.

The set came to an end with 2 brilliants songs "The Crystal Ocean" and "Deliverance" which for me was the highlight of the night, the audience singing the words right back at the band and throwing their arms in the air. As the show ended most people rushed out to the cool night air, I welcomed it as I was soaked in sweat from all the moshing I had done. Another fantastic Mission show what more can I say...


07.08.2004 Mera Luna Festival - Hildesheim

Einige Eindrücke zum Mission Auftritt aus dem Forum:

Aus meiner Sicht war's doch ganz ok! Allein die Tatsache, dass Wayne nun offenbar auf "Wein" aus 1 Liter Flaschen umgestiegen ist (wenn ich das richtig gesehen habe), lässt meinen rein persönlichen Herzrhythmus natürlich schon arg leiden, aber das wär's auch schon. An die technischen Probleme hat man sich bei Mission ja leider schon längst gewöhnt, blöd nur, dass ein Grossteil der Filmaufnahmen durch den stagehead, der sicherlich bei mind. einem drittel der Songs neben Wayne stand, unbrauchbar geworden ist. (aber kein Vergleich zu den Problemen bei Lacrimosa, der die ersten 3 Songs praktisch ohne funktionierendes Mikro bestreiten musste! Jaja, ich weiss, viele werden denken, ZUM GLÜCK!).
Das Programm war ok, insbesondere "deliverance" in der klassischen Version mit Intro ein echter Leckerbissen, allerdings teile ich deine Meinung bzgl. "hymn". In Gesprächen mit eher neutralen Zuhörern habe ich zudem oftmals den verdacht der Lustlosigkeit seitens Wayne mitgeteilt bekommen. Nun ja, kommuniziert hat er ja nicht wirklich viel, aber das ist halt sein Lampenfieber bei so grossen Gigs!!
Achim

Ich hatte auch dass Vergnügen nach X-Jahren die Jungs mal wieder live zu erleben. Der Kritik am Hymn kann ich mich nur anschließen.
Am meisten hat mich der kratzige Sound gestört, aber dieses Problem hatten dort auch andere Bands. Trotzdem waren The Mission für mich der absolute persönliche Höhepunkt auf dem Festival!
Thomas

Das Konzert unserer "Helden" fand ich überwiegend O.K. Der allgemeinen Kritik an Hymn schließe ich mich aber an. Auch fand ich, daß das Konzert vor vier Jahren auf dem Mera Luna besser war. Irgendwie hab' ich zum Beispiel in Erinnerung, daß das Publikum damals mehr Begeisterung gezeigt hat. Aber die Band hatte vor vier Jahren meines Wissens auch 'ne bessere Uhrzeit für den Auftritt und somit wohl auch mehr Spielzeit zur Verfügung.
Stefan


Songliste aller gespielten Songs:

Mindestens "mercenary" stand noch mit auf der Liste der geprobten Songs, wurde dann aber doch nicht gespielt.